The invention is concerned with a vehicle roof with a roof opening that can be closed with a sliding cover, a framework that surrounds the roof opening at least at the front and on the sides and forms a framed opening underneath the roof opening having a channel for water that is limited by a protuberance of the framework, and with a wind deflector running parallel to the front edge of the roof opening that is held by at least one hinge located on the protuberance of the framework and can be swung out around the shaft of the hinge by spring tension when the cover is pushed back as well as swung in against the spring tension when the cover is closed.
In a known vehicle roof of this kind U.S. Pat. No. 4,332,416, the shape of the deflector is essentially that of an elongated plate that can be swung around an axis located close to its front edge. One end of a lever is articulated to each end of the wind deflector and the lever extends rearwardly from the wind deflector to an opposite end which is articulated to a bearing that, in turn, is connected with a guide rail for the cover. When the cover is pushed forward, parts fastened permanently to the cover ride against the lever and press it down, lowering the deflector down, too. The known piece of apparatus requires a relatively large number of parts. Consequently, its manufacture and installation are relatively expensive where money and time are concerned.
Therefore, the invention has an object to provide a vehicle roof that requires an especially small number of structural parts and can be installed quickly and easily.
This object is achieved by the present invention by making the wind deflector have an element with a first arm that is inclined upward and forward at an oblique angle in the swung-out position and a second arm that is angled down from the front end of the first arm, by locating the shaft of the hinge close to the rear end of the first arm and by making a part fastened permanently to the cover come up against the top of the first arm of the wind deflector element to swing the wind deflector.
This manner of construction makes it possible to eliminate the need for lateral levers to activate the wind deflector and the swiveling bearings required for such levers.
The fact that a wind deflector element with a first arm that is inclined upward and forward at an oblique angle in the swung-out position and a second arm that is angled down from the front end of the first arm is already known (FIGS. 3 through 5 of British Pat. No. 1,540,614). In that piece of apparatus, however, to activate the wind deflector, a cam is attached to the front end of a forwardly spring-biased operating rod that is longitudinally displaceable and that extends to the rear along the lateral edge of the roof opening and has a catch at its rear end. When the cover is closed, the catch butts against a stop in a lateral water channel to limit the forward motion of the operating rod. There is a stop near the rear edge of the cover that comes up against the catch when the pushing back of the cover begins, and as a result the operating rod is pulled to the rear. The cam at the front end of the operating rod then presses against the bottom of attachments at the sides of the wind deflector element located at the back. The bottom of the attachments slopes downward at the rear. As a result of this, the wind deflector swings out against the power of a return spring. When the pushing back of the cover continues, the catch slips down from a guide plate mounted in the lateral water channel and is released from the stop in the cover as a result. Then the cover can be moved as far back as is desired without having any further influence on the wind deflector.
If this method of arrangement is used, the cost in time and money of manufacturing and installing is even greater than in the case of the first known vehicle roof described above. Furthermore, functioning parts of the wind deflector adjusting device are located in the channel for water. Consequently, they are more subject to corrosion. On the other hand, the piece of apparatus of the invention operates without having any functioning parts located in the water channel.
The hinge of the present invention can be connected directly with the protuberance of the framework. If a cable conduit covering is attached to the part of this protuberance that runs along the front edge of the framed opening, it is desirable, on the other hand, for the hinge to be connected with the cable conduit covering.
It is advantageous for the deflector to be held by two hinges that are displaced inward in the direction of the longitudinal central line of the roof with respect to the lateral edges of the wind deflector.
In further development of the invention, the wind deflector element is shaped so that, in the swung-in position of the wind deflector, its first arm covers the protuberance in the framework and the cable conduit covering, and its second arm projects into the water channel. In this way, the wind deflector also is a screen by which the visibility of underlying bolted connections between the cable conduit covering and the cable conduit is shielded, for example. The overall height can be kept especially small.
The wind deflector element can have a portion of its edge project above the level of the first arm at the point where the first and the second arms meet and join each other at an angle. Because the adjustment levers at the sides are eliminated, the length of the deflector can be such that the lateral edges of the wind deflector, in its swung-out position, are located immediately adjacent to the lateral edges of the roof opening. As a result, the penetration of drafts into the vehicle interior is also prevented in that area.
It is desirable to provide at least one slide bar, that is attached to the front end of the cover as a part permanently fastened to the cover, as an actuating member that comes up against the upper edge of the first arm of the wind deflector to lower it. An advantage of this is the fact that when the cover is pushed into its closed position the wind deflector remains extended for a particularly long time.
To further simplify installation, it is advantageous for the hinge to have a bearing block with sliding parts that can be inserted in guides in the cable conduit covering and for at least one catch to be provided to at least temporarily fix the bearing block that has been inserted in the guides with respect to the cable conduit covering.
The wind deflector element can be a bent sheet metal part or a profile part, and especially an unreworked profile part. In the latter case, it can have a light-metal, continuous-casting profile part. Each of the two lateral edges of the profile part is preferably covered by an end piece in order to obtain a clean and aesthetically pleasing closure of the profile part, even without reworking. When that is the case, the end pieces can have attachments on their sides that project inward and are inserted in a complementary receiver in the profile part and have seats for the shaft of the hinge at the same time. It is a good idea to have a torsion spring slipped onto the shaft of the hinge that rests against the wind deflector, on the one hand, and against the part of the roof that supports the wind deflector, on the other. The rear edge of the wind deflector element can constitute a stop that limits the outward-swinging movement of the wind deflector, and the wind deflector element can be connected with the bearing block by means of an additional holding shackle. To provide a better seal between the extended wind deflector and the border of the roof opening, the wind deflector element can carry a flexible sealing lip in the area of the lower end of the second arm.
These and further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which show, for purposes of illustration only, several embodiments in accordance with the present invention.